Hawthorne’s Tuihalamaka has made huge strides and wants to finish strong

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Running back Lawrence Tuihalamaka wants to win the Lions Senior All-Star Game on Saturday for his teammates at Hawthorne. Together they endured an 0-10 season despite Tuihalamaka?s 862 yards rushing and eight touchdowns.

Don’t tell Hawthorne running back Lawrence Tuihalamaka that Saturday’s Lions Senior All-Star Game at Mira Costa is just for fun.

Not after the year he had.

Not only does Tuihalamaka get a chance to record a victory after an 0-10 season, he can put a tumultuous year off the field behind him.

“It can be an exclamation point, a chance to finish something good,” Tuihalamaka said.

Enduring an 0-10 season was far from Tuihalamaka’s biggest problem.

Tuihalamaka was shot in the shoulder during what he said was a “gang-related” drive-by shooting in the Inglewood-Lennox area on Cinco de Mayo, in front of his aunt’s house.

He lost some of his vision after a different shooting incident, this time a paintball in the eye.

He admitted he has been in and out of jail.

He transferred from Serra, a powerhouse program that eventually made it to a CIF final, to Hawthorne, a team that hasn’t posted an on-field victory since Oct. 28. 2005.

Yet Tuihalamaka said transferring from Serra was the right thing for him, calling Hawthorne his “home” after returning to the school he attended as a freshman.

“Gangs and drugs really messed me up,” Tuihalamaka said. “I’ve pushed away from that big time. I made school and football my life.”

In the regular-season finale against Santa Monica – with Hawthorne on the verge of a third straight winless season save for a forfeit victory over Dominguez in 2007 – Tuihalamaka gathered his team and gave a stirring speech.

“He told his teammates he knew he could’ve been 10-0 (at Serra), but he felt at home,” said Coach James Swain, a Hawthorne alum. “He felt he was with family, no matter the record. That’s what I respected about him, that he was so genuine.”

Tuihalamaka certainly made himself at home at Hawthorne, rushing for 862 yards and eight touchdowns on 120 carries despite playing with two plates and six screws in his arm as a result of the drive-by shooting.

“I didn’t even practice until the first scrimmage in September,” Tuihalamaka said. “I was still healing up. They said it will probably take another year before I’m fully recovered. But I feel like I’m at about 89 percent.”

Yes, that’s 89 percent – Tuihalamaka really knows his body.

His season was even more remarkable because there was no secret where the ball was going.

Yet Tuihalamaka recorded five 100-yard rushing games – 101 against Centennial, 151 in the Mayor’s Cup against Leuzinger, 165 against Inglewood, 115 against Morningside and 165 against Culver City.

“When I came from Serra to Hawthorne, I really thought I was going to help the team out,” Tuihalamaka said. “But it was the same results – loss, loss, loss. I tried my best every game, but still couldn’t get a win. I felt I let the team down.”

Football runs in Tuihalamaka’s veins.

His cousin Sione Tuihalamaka was the Del Rey League’s Lineman of the Year at Serra this season.

He has family playing at the University of Arizona – brother Vuna Tuihalamaka is a linebacker, and cousin Apaiata Tuihalamaka is a defensive end. This season, they helped the Wildcats to their first bowl win since 1998.

Swain said Tuihalamaka’s competitive spirit was evident at Hawthorne.

“He just has a hunger for the game,” Swain said. “He wasn’t a great practice player, but he wasn’t a bad one either. On game day, he turned it to a different level.

“He was one of the biggest motivators for me. He left a situation like Serra to come home, he led us in touchdowns, he played hurt – I really wanted to win a game for him.”

Tuihalamaka said going to school at Hawthorne is not easy because of racial tensions high at the school – Latinos facing off against blacks and Tongans (like Tuihalamaka).

“Every day at school, you have to fight to get to class,” Tuihalamaka said. “It’s hard to get through school.”

Tuihalamaka credits Swain and Serra coach Scott Altenberg – who still plays a large role in his life – with helping turn him around.

Tuihalamaka will continue his football career at El Camino College, but he said there is one more thing he needs to do before finishing high school – win on Saturday.

“I’m going to give it to my Hawthorne teammates and win this game for them,” Tuihalamaka said. “This is my second chance, to show what I couldn’t show on an 0-10 team.”